The long awaited departure of the Costa Concordia from the Tuscan island of Giglio has again been delayed and is now scheduled for Wednesday.
Originally, it had been hoped to move off today, a date which was then moved to tomorrow.
Speaking at a polemical news conference this evening, the head of Italy’s Civil Protection, Franco Gabrielli, said that the delay had not been caused by any “problems” but simply because not all the pre-departure preparations had been completed.
Given that it will be necessary to suspend all commercial traffic into the port of Giglio, including the ferries from Porto Santo Stefano on the mainland, the salvage team have preferred to wait until Wednesday when they are sure that they are ready for the blast-off.
The suspension of other shipping is prompted by the fact that the move-off operations in the port will probably take up to six hours as two tugs pull the wreck away from the coast, probably turning her around in order to head directly north to Genoa.
The postponement of the move-off was not only the issue to prompt concern this afternoon since the “Wreck Removal Project” news conference had to concede that there had been a certain misunderstanding about the role of the towmaster Dutchman Hans Bosch.
At a news conference yesterday, he had been presented as the man ultimately in command during the haulage operation.
Today, the salvage team had to conceded that, although he is the towmaster, he is not in overall command between Wednesday and Sunday when the Concordia travels 240 kilometres north to Genoa.
That role essentially still rests with the chief salvage master, South African Nick Sloane, in close contact with the personnel on both the tugs.
Given that this is Italy, reporters immediately smelled a rat, asking if there had been some problem between Messers Sloane and Bosch.
Speaking on behalf of the Costa Cruise company which administers the Concordia, German Michael Stamm told reporters that he was glad that they were arguing about the title and job description of the tug captain.
This meant, he added, that “the most difficult salvage operation of all time” had not encountered any other, much more serious problems.
The salvage team confirmed that the main reason for the delay was linked to the unsetted weather conditions, with unexpectedly high winds over the weekend making it very difficult to place four of the chains, which holds together the “caissons” or bouyancy tanks along both sides of the ship.
These caissons will in fact form a sort of straight-jacket which is intended to hold the ship together during its last voyage to Genoa.
In the meantime, the complex process, which has seen the wreck refloated from a two thirds submerged position to floating on the surface continues apace.
Today, for the first time, the ship’s prow emerged from the water, finally making it seem possible that this huge stricken monster can indeed by towed away from Giglio.
The Costa Concordia ran aground off nature reserve island Giglio in January 2012 with the loss of 32 lives.
The shipwreck had been prompted by an ill-advised “sail-by” close to the rocks of the island, a sail-by ordered by Captain Francesco Schettino and a sail-by which came to a disasterous end when the ship hit the rocks, opening up a 70 metre gash below water.
Capt Schettino is currently being tried for multiple manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning his ship. A judgement in his trial is expected some time next year.